Though nonbinding, the vote on competing motions before the Academic Senate is a rare judgment by faculty on a chancellor’s ability to lead and could influence decisions on Katehi’s future by University of California leaders. The crisis was sparked by the Nov. 18 pepper-spraying, in which campus police doused seated protesters with the orange irritant, and a viral video of the episode prompted international outrage. But for some professors, the confidence/no-confidence vote on Katehi transcends the actual incident. Instead, it represents a vote of approval or disapproval on the direction Katehi, 57, is taking UC Davis 2 1/2 years into her tenure. More broadly, faculty members say, the vote is a commentary on the direction the University of California system is moving as state funding is cut and UC Davis, like other UC campuses, pursues higher tuition from out-of-state students, private donations, and federal and corporate research grants.